More From City Council: $2 Million in Grants, Snowplow Contracts, Prop 1A Receivables, and Recognition to Ken Watts

Ken Watts, in receipt of a framed copy of the CIO Digest article presented by Kelly Ent, is the City's one-man IT team.

The City of Big Bear Lake has received $2 million in grant funding from the Clean Water State Revolving Fund Program and, as announced by City Engineer David Lawrence at this week’s City Council meeting, these funds are designated for two sewer projects, one of which is the rehabilitation of the City’s lift station No. 2/2A. This sewer pump, located off Lakeview Drive, experienced flood damage during storms of January 2008. The second project, to be outlined before Council in November, will include the replacement of 1700 feet of eight-inch sewer line on Tahoe Drive, from Thrush to Eureka.
In other news from the meeting of October 12, Council was unanimous in their renewal of contracts for snowplowing services for specified portions of Big Bear Lake; these updated contracts are with local operators Bear Valley Paving and Romans Construction.
City Council also unanimously approved the Proposition 1A program, which allows for tax revenues due to the City from the State of California to instead be sold at 100% value to California Communities; by participating in the bond option, rather than waiting on revenues from the State with 2% interest in 2013, the City will receive the funds immediately. Other agencies, including the Community Services District and the Municipal Water District, are also considering the bond option, rather than banking on the receipt of funds from the State in 2013. According to City Manager Jeff Mathieu, participating in the bond option is “a great way to protect the taxpayers.”
City staff on Monday also recognized Ken Watts, the City’s information technology manager for the last three years, given his contribution to an article titled “Does Your Town Get IT?” in CIO Digest, which featured Big Bear Lake. After being presented with a framed copy of the article, Watts noted that he first arrived in Big Bear Lake as a consultant but stayed on because, in his words, “I saw that the City had a commitment to do things right, from the top down.”